The New Year’s Honours List is published today, recognising the achievements and service of extraordinary people across the United Kingdom.

The vast majority of people recognised include those supporting the Big Society by making a real difference to their local community through volunteering, fundraising, social action and philanthropy.

There is an OBE for Christopher Preddie, who has devoted his life to youth work and reducing crime. He uses his own personal experience to talk to youth groups and prisoners about crime and the huge impact it can have on your life and has been actively involved with Crimestoppers.

People honoured with an MBE for helping their community include:

Kirsty Ashton, who has been a dedicated fundraiser since 1998 for When You Wish Upon a Star charity which supports sick and terminally ill children. Despite battling serious health issues she has helped raise in excess of £87,000 and has enabled more than 100 children suffering from a range of illnesses to take a once in a lifetime holiday to Lapland.

Dr Margaret Philippou, whose volunteering has spanned three decades and who is now focused on helping young people move away from gang related crime by giving them an incentive to be ‘STARs’ (Social, Trustworthy and Responsible).

Terence Monaghan, who created a volunteer driving service in Essex called Stock Cares, for vulnerable people to get to essential health appointments.

Anant Barodekar, who for over 25 years has made a major commitment to the training and welfare of young people with special needs, arising from ethnic and cultural differences or educational, social or other problems.

Robyn Keeble, aged just 21, who worked with other young people to set up ‘SW!TCH ID’ to encourage young people to make a positive contribution in their local community.

Philanthropy has also been a prominent theme amongst the recipients with 14 philanthropists receiving awards at knighthood and CBE level. The list includes knighthoods to Paul Ruddock, Chief Executive of Lansdowne Partners, who has contributed to the revival of the Victoria and Albert Museum and other cultural institutions; to (Herbert) Doug Ellis, who became heavily involved in charity work through his chairmanship of Aston Villa Football Club, and has made substantial personal donations to the NSPCC and other institutions; and to Rodney Aldridge, Chairman of the Aldridge Foundation, who was a founder sponsor of the Academy Programme. Awards at CBE level include Dr Naim Dangoor who has continued to provide hands-on and extensive personal support of education and charitable giving even though he is now in his 90s. There is an OBE for Jack Livingstone who has been contributing and supporting the community in Manchester since the 1960s and whose time and attention can be seen in every aspect of life from culture to cancer treatment.

In total 984 people have been recommended to The Queen for an award:

828 candidates have been selected at MBE and OBE level, 587 at MBE and 241 at OBE.

70 per cent of the recipients are people who have undertaken outstanding work in their communities either in a voluntary or paid capacity.

There are 420 successful women candidates on the List, representing 43 per cent of the total. Women candidates include 1 GBE, 7 Dames, 27 CBEs and 3 CBs.

12 per cent of the successful candidates come from ethnic minority communities.

Among the well known names being honoured there are CBEs for entertainer Ronnie Corbett, actress Helena Bonham Carter and author, poet and broadcaster Clive James. The OBEs include Dennis ‘Dickie’ Bird for services to Cricket and charity; Alex Crawford, the award-winning journalist who reported from Libya for Sky News; and the TV presenter Lorraine Kelly for services to charity and the Armed Forces. The MBEs include David Harewood, the actor, and David Rodigan, the radio presenter.

Senior women at DBE in this List include Julie Moore, Chief Executive, University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, whose personal involvement has been key in the development and staffing of the military managed ward concept at Selly Oak Hospital; Professor Glynis Breakwell, Vice-Chancellor, University of Bath, who has increased the profile of the University as a world class research institution; and Moira Gibb, Chief Executive, London Borough of Camden, who as Chair of the Social Work Reform Board has galvanised the sector into delivering reform.

There are four Parliamentarians honoured in this list including a GBE (Dame Grand Cross) for Baroness Hayman, the first ever elected Speaker of the House of Lords; knighthoods for Roger Gale, MP (Conservative) for North Thanet, and Bob Russell, MP (Lib Dem) for Colchester; and a DBE for Joan Ruddock, MP (Labour) for Lewisham Deptford.

In Law and Order, the awards include a CBE for Meredydd Hughes, Chief Constable, South Yorkshire Police; and a CBE for Lord Carlile, the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation whose work shaped the definition of terrorism on which the UK’s laws rely.

About 11 per cent of honours are for work in Education. There is a DBE for Sylvia Morris, Headteacher at the Cathedral School of St Saviour and St Mary Overy, Southwark, graded as outstanding by Ofsted. The knighthoods include Professor Diarmaid Macculloch, Professor of the History of the Church, University of Oxford, for his substantial contributions to British culture.

The list of education CBEs includes Jean Gross, England’s Communications Champion for Children, who has worked to improve services for children and young people with speech, language and communication needs.

In total 15 headteachers, and 10 school and college principals are recommended for honours, as well as 13 school governors. The education MBEs also include an award to Jeannette Orrey, who invited Jamie Oliver to the school where she was employed as Catering Manager, leading to his 2005 ‘Feed Me Better’ TV series. She now works as a School Meals Policy Advisor for the Food For Life Partnership advising organisations on improving the skills of cooks and school food.

Health makes up seven per cent of all honours. The knighthoods include Professor Stephen Bloom, Clinical Director of Pathology and Therapy Services, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, and an outstanding scientific leader on obesity. The awards at CBE include Professor Hilary Chapman, Chief Nurse and Chief Operating Officer, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, who is particularly influential across the UK university hospital network.

There is a rich breadth of vocations within the honours in the Health sector; recommendations at MBE include six GPs, five Nurses, a Physiotherapist, two Pharmacists, a Dentist, a Volunteer Ambulance Driver, and an MBE for Christine Mills, Founder of the Hope for Tomorrow Charity. Her fundraising efforts resulted in the opening of the first Mobile Chemotherapy Unit in the UK.

Industry and the Economy make up 12 per cent of the awards and include a knighthood for Michael Bear, the Lord Mayor, for his service to regeneration, charity and the City of London. There is a knighthood for David Reid, lately Chairman, Tesco plc; and a knighthood for Andrew Witty, Chief Executive Officer, GlaxoSmithKline. The awards at CBE include Helena Morrissey, Chair and Chief Executive Officer, Newton Investment Management Ltd, who formed the 30 Percent Club to press companies to employ more female directors.

There are MBEs for a wide variety of people, including Jane Hopkins, who founded MumsClub in 2007 to provide much needed support for other mothers in business.

The Committees have also recognised candidates linked to the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics. There is a knighthood for Charles Allen, who has supported the 2012 Olympics in a number of roles, and a knighthood for John Armitt, Chair of the Olympic Delivery Authority, an eminent engineer with a distinguished career in both the private and public sector.

Science and Technology makes up three per cent of the awards and there are knighthoods for Professor Andre Geim and Professor Konstantin Novoselov, Nobel Prize-winning Professors of Physics at the University of Manchester; and a knighthood for Dr Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, who was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2009 for the study of the translation of DNA information into protein by ribosomes.

The MBEs include an award to Vincent Wedlock-Ward, Project Officer for the Southern Housing Group, who has been the driving force behind reducing the energy consumption of social housing on the Isle of Wight, an exemplar project resulting in reduced energy bills, bringing many out of fuel poverty.

Arts and Media make up 7 per cent of the total. There is a DBE for the author, Penelope Lively, and knighthoods for Peter Bazalgette, the TV producer, Professor Geoffrey Hill, the poet, and Antonio Pappano, Musical Director, Royal Opera House.

Those supporting local communities through the arts are also recognised, including an MBE to Barbara Benson-Smith who has co-run the Benson Stage Academy in Whitby for over 58 years, being both a prolific dance teacher and a considerable fund-raiser for the NSPCC and other local charities.

The State Sector awards include a KCB for Jeremy Heywood, Permanent Secretary, Number 10 Downing Street, and a KCB for Alex Allan, lately Chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee. There is also a CB for James Bowler, Principal Private Secretary, Number 10.

Awards for Sport make up three per cent of the total. There are CBEs for Professor Sarah Springman, for services to Triathlon, and for Giles Clarke, Chair of the England and Wales Cricket Board.

There is an OBE for Stuart Hall, the sports broadcaster. Outstanding success in golf in 2011 is recognised with an OBE to Darren Clarke, winner of the British Open, and an MBE to Rory Mcilroy, winner of the US Open.

The MBEs also include awards to Sarah Stevenson, the Taekwondo World Champion; Christopher Paterson, the rugby player with the all-time record number of appearances for Scotland; and Martyn Williams, Wales’ most capped rugby forward.

Finally, there is also a CBE for Nigel Mansell for services to children and young people. Following his Formula One career, he has been the President of UK Youth for nearly ten years and has been an inspiring figure for many young people across the UK.